Ford Announces Fiesta ST Race Car

The US-spec Fiesta ST debuted at last year's LA Auto Show, and that same car built exclusively for competing at the Global RallyCross Championship (GRC) and Global X Games, will be on display later this week at the Chicago Auto Show. Built by Swedish race builders OlsbergsMSE in collaboration with Ford Racing, the Fiesta ST GRC will help the street-going Fiesta ST gain traction in the USA's fledgling hot-hatch segment. Tanner Foust and Brian Deegan will drive the OlsbergsMSE Fiesta ST GTC in this year's Global RallyCross.

They'll will be joined by Ken Block and his Hoonigan team who'll be racing a Fiesta ST in a new blue livery. Jointly developed by Ford's Team RS in Europe and SVT in the US, the Fiesta ST packs a 1.6-liter EcoBoost turbo four with an output of 197 horsepower and 214 lb-ft of torque. This small but powerful engine is mated to a six-speed manual transmission that helps the car deliver up to 34 mpg. In order to handle the heavy doses of power in a fairly small car, Ford fitted the Fiesta ST with 17-inch wheels and calibrated the steering to be more direct and responsive than the base model. Specs of the GRC model are expected to be announced when it debuts at Chicago this week.